Tuesday, December 21, 2010 ~ 6:30pm

Little Lake Grange, 291 School St – Willits, CA

Theme: A Council of All Beings

We celebrate the turning of the Wheel as Yule comes to the forest

*The trees, the salmon, the sacred deer & animals…

All have something to share with us about the future

and our human interconnectedness with the Web of Life*
~~~

~ a family friendly program ~  Candle lighting & sing along  to be followed by the Spiral Dance!

We invite you to wear a costume or mask or head piece

that celebrates your love of nature – animal, bird,  tree, fairy, bee…

~~~~~

A Benefit for the Grange Remodel Project  ~  $5-10 at the door (CHILDREN FREE)

Midwinter Traditions –

for Willits and Beyond!

by Ann Waters

Event Calendar – Willits Winter Solstice Celebration & Spiral Dance

December 21st, 2010 at 6:30pm at Little Lake Grange, 291 School St, Willits

What is Midwinter, and why do we celebrate it?  The longest night of the year and the dawn that followed was considered a special turning point in the solar year for our ancestors.  Looking for the Sun’s return is still a bright thought on our dark winter nights.

The ancient traditions of old Europe would have found us dancing the longest night into dawn. The drum jam and dancing needs YOU to bring your drum and rattles and join in the merriment as we dance together as long as we can stand up.

“COUNCIL OF ALL BEINGS” is the theme for our 16^th Annual Willits Winter Solstice Celebration & Spiral Dance. We will all participate in a wonderful play that is about Solstice, the forest creatures, human community & the Earth. This traditional Willits celebration is an evening of songs, dance, theater, candle lighting, making wishes, and ends with a spiral dance and drum jam. Children of all ages are invited to join in the Dance of the Faires & Creatures as well as in the opening procession.

This year is incredible…we hope you will come dressed as your favorite animal, plant, tree or fairie, elf, or as yourself in your brightest ceremonial garb!

More about this seasonal celebration…The marking of the yearly cycles of the seasons was a matter of life & death for our ancestors.  – they measured and noted the sun’s path and length of days for reasons of weather and agriculture, or for their own nomadic changes.  We might do well to begin to note the natural cycles as a part of our return to nature- our own bio-logic consciousness…our shift into a new way of being…solar values.

Peoples all over the world and throughout time have celebrated the turning of the  wheel, the cycles of the seasons upon which all life depends. One of the most celebrated the world over is Midwinter – celebrated with lights as we honor the Sun’s return on December 21st!

Winter Solstice has a special magic that resonates deep within us.  It is the season of hope and love, of goodwill and sharing, of making merry, making wishes and giving blessings. On this, the darkest night, they come together, to honor the time of gestation, of dreaming and inner sight.

Winter Solstice Eve is the darkest, longest night of the year – midwinter to our ancestors,  the very beginning of winter to us.  The long dark nights are a time to sleep more and eat less, to rejuvenate, to be still and quiet, to go within to know and heal oneself,  to awaken our curiosity and nurture our creativity, to tell our stories,  to incubate our  ideas and our dreams.

Worldwide – through the years, most cultures have held festivals, gatherings, rituals or other celebrations – quite often involving light and candles around this time.

Community celebrations that mark the seasons bring us together regularly and promote deeper relationships.

Come to the Spiral Dance December 21st, 2010 at 6:30pm at Little Lake Grange, 291 School St, Willits – and make a seasonal tradition for your family that goes beyond the commercial feeling that now pervades this time of year!

This non-denominational event is open to all ages and families are encouraged.

Bring the family, drums, rattles, and your costumed self.

Suggested donation of $5-10 for adults, families $10. Children free.  No-one turned away for lack of funds.

Donations will be used to repair and maintain the beloved Great Hall of the Grange Building.

For more information contact: abweller@pacific.net – see notices on www.anniegreenjeans.com or  call 459-2418

Blessings of Yule!

—by Ken Humphreys—

Slow and slow turns the Wheel of the Year.

To the season of silence, cold, bleak and drear.

Hope’s to be born, from the dark, wintry night—

The feast is prepared, and the Yule-log alight.

Round is the wreath, as the year turns round;

Green is the Holly—Life midst Death found;

The berries red as the Sunrise of Birth

Of Hope to the world, and Joy to the Earth.

Bright blessings of Yule! May they shine on your life!

May you feast, and rejoice, and set aside strife!

Hope and gladness be with you, gloom and misery fly

Away, at the Birth of the Lord of the Sky!

15^th Annual Winter Solstice Spiral Dance 2009 presents:
“ A-Wassailing ! ”

Saturday, December 19, 7 pm

Willits Grange, 291 School St.

The 15th Annual Winter Solstice Celebration will have a choral theme this year. The spiral dance will occur at the end of the evening as always. This year we are blending our annual event with the Vocal Jazz Ensemble performance piece holding center stage.

“A-Wassailing” is a mock contest between peasants and nobles, set in Olde England.  The medium is the Christmas carol–the audience will be the judge!  Two groups of singers from the Vocal Jazz Ensemble will take part, one singing classical and the other folk-based carols from across the centuries and continents.  The more experienced classically trained “nobles” will set the bar very high.  The “peasants” have youth and enthusiasm on their side.  Both groups have a unique collection of carols, many of which will be new to you. This is the final performance of the Vocal Jazz Ensemble, a class from Mendocino College (Willits Center) taught by Don Willis, who also created the concept for “A-Wassailing.”

Join us for a romp thru time, from medieval sacred music to modern jazz, as we celebrate the turning of the Wheel with a caroling ‘sing-off’ of peasants vs. nobles. Be prepared for a wild, entertaining ride!

This is a benefit for the Grange Remodel Project. $5-10 at the door.

14th Annual** 2008 Winter Solstice Celebration & Spiral Dance

“WEAVING OUR FUTURE”

December 21st, 2008 – 7pm

at Little Lake Grange

291 School St, Willits

*******
A celebration of midwinter with an evening of songs, dance,
theater, candle lighting, and a drum jam!
***
Bring the family, drums, rattles, and an offering for the Food Bank
~~~

This year we bring our community focus onto children and our future.  Our celebration  performances will include “SPACE’s Feat of Freedom Dance/Theatre”, Children’s Mexican Folklorico, The Muse Children’s Theater, Hope, Harmony & Legal Advice, “Anda Jaleo Flamenco”, Rhythm Tonic Dancers, and the West Side Woolleycats and more!

Suggested donation of $5-10 for adults, families $10.

email abweller@pacific.net or  call 459-4499 for more information

**I am not even sure if the year as mentioned (14th?) is correct, as this tradition has been going on for so long – it might even be 15 years!

The point of this post is to remind us all of the importance of the yearly cycles of the seasons – even as our ancient ancestors marked the sun’s path and length of days for reasons of weather and agriculture, or for their own nomadic changes, we might do well to begin to note the natural cycles as a part of our return to nature- our own bio-logic consciousness…our shift into a new way of being…solar values, community celebrtions bringing deeper relationships, and so much more!  Create your own local celebration – or model it on ours….join us energetically as we honor the Sun’s return on December 21st!

Worldwide, interpretation of the event has varied from culture to culture, but most cultures have held a recognition of rebirth, involving holidays, festivals, gatherings, rituals or other celebrations around that time.